It is known in the vehicle wiring harness art to use "floating" connectors, wherein a male or female connector is mounted to a fixed surface with a degree of flotation to accommodate movement of the mating connector. For example, it is typical to mount a female power supply connector to the door jamb of a vehicle, while a male connector which supplies power to door-mounted controls extends from the door to plug into the female connector in the door jamb. The door jamb is a relatively fixed surface, while the male connector's mounting to the movable door is generally less stable. It is known to mount the female connector in a bracket in the door jamb such that it "floats" with limited compliance in the x-y plane of the door jamb to accommodate male connector motion caused by vibration and door movement. Other uses for floating connectors include terminal connections between the vehicle door frame and door panels, which can flex and vibrate relative to the frame, and terminal connections between self-contained electrical devices such as vehicle radios and the dashboards or other mounting panels into which they are plugged. However, prior art floating connectors of the type described above have experienced problems with terminal wear and accidental terminal disengagement due to movement of the male connector in the axial mating (z-axis) direction, movement which the prior art female connector mounting arrangement is not designed to accommodate.